tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57092564679176611422024-03-19T00:14:00.363-04:00John Takes Pop-CultureMore seriously than it takes itselfJohn R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.comBlogger103125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-86910663742146889212015-08-17T23:44:00.000-04:002015-08-17T23:44:20.113-04:00Update 43<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span style="line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, I'm filling out this form for that continuing education place I've mentioned, hoping I can find a few interested </span><span style="line-height: 15.3600006103516px; white-space: pre-wrap;">members</span><span style="line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to help me write my book. Here are some of the questions and my first stab at replies. Interesting and </span><span style="line-height: 15.3600006103516px; white-space: pre-wrap;">challenging</span><span style="line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;"> document.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Write a brief description of your intended pursuit considering the following: your questions and quandaries regarding this area of interest, what you hope for once your pursuit has been concluded, and why this pursuit is valuable.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-0dda1683-3ede-af07-9190-b316bc1f7f00" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’d like Perpetua’s help in completing and publishing a work of non-fiction discussing the nature and potential value of “pop-culture”. The first section of the book (which I’ve already begun) discusses what pop-culture is, beginning with discussions of human nature and art in general as a necessary foundation. The second section will discuss major themes and ideas that appear again and again in pop-culture, their value and any dangers or errors they involve. D</span><span style="line-height: 15.3600006103516px; white-space: pre-wrap;">istributed</span><span style="line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;"> throughout both sections will be </span><span style="line-height: 15.3600006103516px; white-space: pre-wrap;">critiques</span><span style="line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and reflections on particular works of pop-culture.</span></span></span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">First and foremost I’d like Perpetua to help keep my feet to the fire. Other work has begun to occupy more and more of my time, and some external pressure to move forward on this will help, I hope.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The major question I have is whether the arguments I make are thorough enough or convincing on their own, and what references I should include to support my thesis.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I believe the work is valuable because there are extreme and immoderate views concerning pop-culture, both for and against it, and given my educational background and personal interests, I believe I am well suited to attempt to give some helpful perspective on the issue.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Why do you think you became interested in this pursuit?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Because I am firmly convinced in the power and importance of reason, philosophy, and truth wherever it can be found, and I also enjoy action movies and Super Mario Bros. I’d like to think both can not only co-exist, but be part of the same thing.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What prior experience do you have with this area of inquiry?</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I wrote articles on pop-cultural subjects for a full year and I currently write for an online publication focusing on video games and entertainment. I have studied the classics of western thought, literature, and dialectic.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What resources do you envision using in support of your endeavors?</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Conversation, reasoned argument, the works of Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas, and potentially Ananda Coomaraswamy and modern works on pop-culture (in my current draft of the book I refer to </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 1.3;">Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud, for example).</span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.2; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Describe your way of learning (if pertinent to the pursuit).</span></span><br />
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I think I learn best through what I’d call absorption, followed by conversation. I’m not a big taker of notes, but if I focus on reading/watching/playing or otherwise experiencing something and then proceed to reflect on it, I think I do pretty well.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Describe your way of interacting with others.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Cordial?</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-84089435770443641332015-08-10T23:24:00.003-04:002015-08-10T23:24:40.050-04:00Update 42<h3>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A Thought</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As I'm preparing to write the book with the active help of other people, I thought it would be a good idea to take stock and think about why I'm writing a book at all. What do I have to say, and who am I that people should listen to me anyway?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">To answer the second part first, I don't think I am anybody in particular. It would be false humility to say that I don't take pride in my abilities, as I see them. I do believe I've a certain knack for seeing things and for putting them into words. I partially have this opinion of myself because it's the opinion of people I trust. But, I don't think I'm special in the sense that what I say has value because it comes from <i style="font-weight: bold;">me</i>. An argument or observation should be persuasive fundamentally because it is true, and that rests on the thing argued or observed, not the person expressing the argument or making the observation. It seems to me that, primarily, the skills of the writer are like the skills of the sailor. A good writer knows how to harness forces that are already there in order to help his readers (and himself) get somewhere worth getting, even if that's just to the middle of the lake and back on a Sunday afternoon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Now to answer the first part: what do I have to say? My thesis is pretty simple. Really, it consists of sharing a framework for thinking, or helping people notice what I think is our common framework to begin with. Specifically, it has to do with the nature and purpose of art that is made and appreciated in itself and it's about pop-culture because... well... I like pop-culture, and there really shouldn't be any difference between stories and drawings and music that are part of "pop-culture" and stories and drawings and music that are part of anything else, at least not in essence. There are several less than essential parts of pop-cultural things that are very interesting and important to take note of (the whole second part of my book is dedicated to taking those notes), but what is to be gained from art made by human beings is the same, regardless of where to comes from.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So there you go, you shouldn't listen to me particularly, but I think if you do you might just learn something about art. Why don't you read my book when it's done, and tell me if I was right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-77664320949610921522015-08-03T21:31:00.001-04:002015-08-03T21:31:17.213-04:00Update 41<h3>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
A Thought</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It seems to me that authentic reaction to things is very important to having a good life and being a good friend, or even a good dinner guest. What I mean is that, when a person genuinely and openly expresses their thoughts and feelings about some topic, it naturally tends to enliven everyone else present, as well as enlivening the subject matter itself. Whether it's a movie, a piece of music, or an idea, expressing your spontaneous reaction to it lets everyone else in on what's going on inside you, and that means it enlarges their perspective on the subject at hand, because they literally have more than one perspective on it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The danger and fear, of course, is that you'll be rejected when you open up like that; that other people won't want to look from another point of view, or they'll turn on you because they think you're wrong. On a certain level, I think we need to weigh the cost and the benefits and tough it out, realizing that it's better to live exuberantly and be attacked than to clamp down on ourselves and become zombified. Frankly, being wrong is possible, and if someone genuinely reacts to your genuine reaction by thinking that you're wrong, you have to be able to take what you dish out. If both of you can continue the conversation after that point, one of you might even end of right about something new. On the other hand, people aren't always fair, and a little look around the internet can show you what that lack of fairness can result in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
Progress Report</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Well, I missed a whole week. Things were pretty busy last Monday, it was my birthday last Wednesday. And, now, I'm sick! Such is life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The book still sits there, waiting to be molded into a masterpiece of deep insight that will enrich the lives of the multitude! All I need is some kind of time machine or pocket dimension or something so I can work on it. Or, barring that, I'll just get well and get off my butt.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 33px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-66408378051878055282015-07-20T23:32:00.000-04:002015-07-20T23:32:45.135-04:00Update 40: Dumbo<h2>
A Thought</h2>
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I watched Dumbo recently. You know, the movie about the baby elephant with big ears that (spoiler) learns how to fly? I actually watched it because we had a formal seminar on it at the school I used to attend. It really is amazing how much interesting food for thought there is in almost anything. All it takes is a little conversational digging to get it out.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"But, Mr. Crow, can it be right to deceive the young into<br />belief in fetishistic magic in order to boost their self-esteem?"<br />"I'll probably be fine."</td></tr>
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The obvious idea or "message" in Dumbo is that what makes someone appear strange or ridiculous might be turned to some good use and, in fact, make one essential, if cultivated correctly. Now, this idea has merits and problems, but I we also brought up a secondary point about the "magic feather", namely that it is a classic Frommian psychological example of idol worship.</div>
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Remember toward the end of the movie, the mouse gives Dumbo one of the crows' feathers and implies that, now that he has the feather, he'll be able to fly? Well, you see, the psychoanalyst and author Eric Fromm defined idol worship as the projection of some innate human power onto an external object, followed by the worship of that power in the object. (The fact that Dumbo is an elephant and not a human is beside the point, he is as good as human for our purposes here... I mean it, stop laughing.)</div>
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So, when the mouse deceives Dumbo about the feather, he does it specifically to get Dumbo to project his own ability to fly onto the inanimate feather because Dumbo won't believe in his own capacity. The idea is that Dumbo will have an easier time believing some external thing has <i>lent</i> him that capacity. Then, once he has proven to himself that he is capable, he no longer needs the feather as a surrogate source of confidence.</div>
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It's interesting to reflect on this, because Dumbo is certainly not the only place we see this idea cropping up. The idea being that an effective way to overcome debilitating fear is to fool someone into thinking they have power because of some external thing, when they've had the power all along (The Lego Movie comes to mind). One can understand the theoretical strategic advantage in this method. But Fromm, at least, certainly didn't think idol worship was the behavior of a psychologically healthy individual. Plus, there's the lying and manipulating people to get them to do what you want.</div>
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Am I ruining a childhood classic by reading too much into it? I prefer to think I'm giving you something intellectually invigorating to do when you're watching movies with kids.</div>
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Progress Report</h2>
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I've had at least two people express interest in reading the book and helping me out with it. Now I've just got to track down the application form for doing a "pursuit" at the continuing education organization I belong to and get it filled out and submitted before next month's meeting. Woo!</div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-46922201171500896322015-07-13T23:50:00.000-04:002015-07-13T23:50:10.185-04:00Update 39<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; height: auto; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Although I had planned to wait until part 1 of the book was more complete, I recently decided to ask a small group of friends and acquaintances to read things as they stand and help me whip it into shape.</span><span class="EOP SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">I'm fortunate enough to belong to a continuing education group. One of the main things this group does is help members with projects or areas of study they're interested in by finding other members willing to work with them toward specific goals. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">I think the goal I want to set is publication of the whole work, self-publication almost certainly.</span><span class="EOP SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">I've announced my intention, but still have to write the formal proposal.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">But, publication is still a good while off. First I have to hand over what I've got and see whether it makes sense to someone outside my head. One thing I'm really looking forward to is advice about elaborating my arguments and providing examples. Outside perspective on the cohesiveness of it all is very important, as writing and thinking about something for too long can cause one to be both too critical and too lenient. An author becomes too critical because none of their writing seems fresh or worth saying, since they've been thinking it and saying it for so long. They become to lenient because, when they understand an argument or point very well, they may not bother to be thorough in the presentation of it, since a short hand explanation will remind them of what they know so well. Of course I think what I wrote makes sense, or else I wouldn't have written it, but I need some confirmation. I'm not the full extent of my intended audience, after all. </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX182337747" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">I also hope this will push me to work harder on the book. My schedule isn't as open as it was when I started this project, and there's always something pressing that takes priority. But, I have to make the time if I ever want to see this get done. Publication may take a while, but it isn't just a fantasy. I have to seriously work toward it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 33px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-10818933028716223662015-07-06T23:56:00.001-04:002015-07-07T00:06:31.731-04:00Update 38: My House Leaked on my Neighbor's House<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6WnX2lHusvdGMsZPUq9kv9ctC7Z5Msw5_5Zh1CGqLXQ7rhUq7_rqCcaUiUAWyTTIhBJeNKHyhSEcL5lYU_s70U4WoawFy5Cjn-Ou69iKlXUM5Ckpq-y4hA9kyqPjsoVMvxVtqsiLKZVo/s1600/water-heater-construction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6WnX2lHusvdGMsZPUq9kv9ctC7Z5Msw5_5Zh1CGqLXQ7rhUq7_rqCcaUiUAWyTTIhBJeNKHyhSEcL5lYU_s70U4WoawFy5Cjn-Ou69iKlXUM5Ckpq-y4hA9kyqPjsoVMvxVtqsiLKZVo/s400/water-heater-construction.jpg" width="342" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I live in a condo on the top floor. It's a lovely place to live in several ways. The view from my balcony makes one feel as if one lived in a tree house. I never have to mow the lawn. I'm only vulnerable to assaults by ninjas or helicopters.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It isn't all gravy, however. As you know, one of the many conveniences of modern life is that, not only are we shielded from the elements in houses of various description, we don't even have to go out into the elements when we want to use them for something. Water, for instance. we just pump that stuff straight into the house, no going down to the river required. It's a great idea in theory and the practice follows suit most of them time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Today, however, my hot water heater started leaking all down into my neighbors house, which upset him. After various investigations that took up quite a chunk of the day, we discovered the whole device has to be replaced.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Such is modern life. Still glad I don't have to carry jars to the river. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Hopefully I'll have more for you next week.</span><br />
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-77595197098545778972015-06-29T23:27:00.001-04:002015-06-29T23:27:22.791-04:00Update 37<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Excerpt</span></h2>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">"This universe that Humanity is struggling with when we make art includes man himself. While the effect of making a piece of art is as we've outlined, namely the materialization of immaterial things, the possible motivations for doing so are quite varied.</span><span class="EOP SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">McCloud may be wrong that humans qua humans make art because they're bored, but individual human beings very well may. They may make it because they're bored, or because they're anxious, angry, lonely, or because of a genuine love of beauty or desire to know the truth.</span><span class="EOP SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX132460021" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">And YouTube commenters may be wrong that humans are miniature gods, but our basic motivations and desires are mysteries that connect us to the highest things in ways we might not see or understand."</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #4c4c4c; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-87645509069550130192015-06-22T23:42:00.001-04:002015-06-22T23:42:53.147-04:00Update 36<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">An Excerpt</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-weight: normal;">"...So, humans live on the line between the material and the immaterial worlds. When we make art that has no practical purpose, we embody some immaterial idea or thing in a physical medium. This embodiment of the immaterial in the material is just what we do when we talk or write, because language conveys ideas (which are immaterial) by means of air waves or ink or LCD monitors (which are material).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Making this connection between language and art allows us to see something very important about human history, namely that it has been a huge conversation. Each generation has spoken to the next, and even distant generations have spoken to each other, by means of art of all kinds. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Philosophical treatises, poetry, sculpture, painting, music, drama, legends, etc. have all embodied thoughts and ideas just as language itself does and anyone who finds these things, and can interpret them, can see something of the immaterial world in them. Their thoughts are then influenced by what they’ve seen and they produce their own art, and on and on and on."</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 14.9333333969116px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-26616666737423711742015-06-15T19:46:00.002-04:002015-06-15T19:46:32.273-04:00Update 35Hello people who read my blog.<br />
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I am dropping in briefly to say that, rather than writing about pop-culture this week, I am entirely enmeshed in it.<br />
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I am currently writing feverishly with my teammates over at<a href="https://www.pixeldynamo.com/e3/" target="_blank"> Pixel Dynamo</a> covering all the news coming out of the Electronic Entertainment Expo in LA.<br />
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Therefore, if you wish to read by me, besides this paltry update, then follow that link above. You should be able to find something I wrote in there.<br />
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See you all next week!John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-53293728781232755902015-06-08T23:36:00.000-04:002015-06-08T23:37:24.326-04:00Thinking About The Lord of The Rings and Update 34<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A thought</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I was reading The Fellowship of the Ring to my daughter for bedtime and something occurred to me that I think might be profound because I felt dumb for not having seen it before. Some have complained about the "Scouring of the Shire" chapter near the end of The Lord of the Rings, calling it superfluous. But I think it's particularly important for the overall structure of the tale.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you look at the first chapters of The Fellowship of the Ring, those having to do with Hobbiton and the preparations for Bilbo's birthday party, the scope of what's going on is tiny. In fact, it's pretty much small town gossip; An old gardener talking about his boss and the weird people who live across the river, etc. Then, as the story goes on, the scope widens more and more until finally we're dealing with ancient races banding together in a last attempt to vanquish an enormously powerful, twisted, primeval spirit bent on the domination of the world for millennia.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">By the end, however, we've got Sam marrying Rosie and having hobbit babies. The subject matter of The Lord of the Rings starts small, gets bigger by degrees, and then shrinks again. The "Scouring of the Shire" is an important step in narrowing the scope again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I felt dumb when this occurred to me because it's been right in front of me the whole time. Bilbo called his book, the account of these events, "There <b>an</b><b>d Back Again</b>."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"A vacation snapshot is a fairly simple example, but the principle holds for all other kinds of non-practical art. Movies, novels, and music all evoke ideas and immaterial things by means of material things. Language itself is probably the most fundamental example of this at work. When we speak, we literally shape the air and use it to convey ideas.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Once we do this, once an idea (or more often a complex of ideas) is embodied in some work of art, that artifact takes on a sort of life of its own. It speaks to us in a metaphorical way by being and remaining what it is and recalling to our minds the ideas that were put into it in the first place. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is not only handy, but essential. Human beings must do this in order to think about things. We embody the immaterial so we can consider it long enough to figure it out, or at least make progress. Since language is an example of this embodiment, no one can avoid being an artist in this sense. It’s inseparable from thought because it’s inseparable from conversation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Speaking of conversation, we’re ready to say what pop-culture is."</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-27779506229638341502015-06-01T23:41:00.003-04:002015-06-01T23:41:35.795-04:00Update 33<h2 style="margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 23.0399990081787px; white-space: pre-wrap;">An Excerpt for you</span></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 23.0399990081787px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"What, then, does art have to do with this third notion of human nature, specifically the art that makes things that are meant to be themselves and to be experienced by us; things like sculptures, novels, and Taylor Swift songs?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 23.0399990081787px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Well, what this kind of art does, given the definition of human nature we’ve settled on, is make the immaterial world of ideals, laws, judgement, and experiences material in some sense. Even a photograph, which is arguably a simple recording of what something looked like at the time the photo was taken, accomplishes this because the photographer has chosen to record something they’ve seen. They might additionally have other aesthetic ideals and impressions they intend to convey, but even a snapshot taken on a vacation is a tangible artifact which embodies, in a sense, the intangible experience the vacationer had.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 23.0399990081787px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The camera simply receives impressions from photons, but what is communicated by the photo to any mind that looks at it is what the photographer saw when he was there, which is more than simple photons.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 23.0399990081787px; white-space: pre-wrap;">They may do this to share it with other people, or to remember what it was like to be there, or both. The point here is that while the medium is physical (a photograph) and even the subject is physical (some place the photographer visited on vacation) it’s the immaterial that drives the taking of the picture and the looking at it."</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-33292845343845303842015-05-25T23:29:00.002-04:002015-05-25T23:29:28.634-04:00Update 32<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Here's a fun excerpt from the part of the book I was looking at today. For a little context, "common sense" in this context is "sense" because it's how we detect things out there in the universe and it's "common" because everybody has access to it.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"Please consider the pubescent/stoner question 'what if life is just a dream?'</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> This question and questions of its kind have given people quite a bit of trouble. But, as I see it, there is a fundamental problem with it. It is, in fact, only the illusion of a question. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">First, asking the question presupposes that the person being asked understands what is meant by dreaming and what is meant by 'life' that includes more than dreaming (that is, being awake). Then, the question suggests that these two things, which must be understood in order for the question to make sense, are the same thing. However, the only reason we have two concepts instead of one is that there are two different states which we distinguish from each other, namely being awake and being asleep. That's why we gave them two names. Like a magician's slight of hand, the question tries to fool us into using something we definitely know (that dreaming and being awake are different) to call that very knowledge into doubt.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What does this have to do with common sense? It shows that, in order to address the question “what if life is just a dream”, one must use common sense even though the question is trying to destroy common sense itself. This is true of everything human beings do in thought. Common sense (reason) is the only tool they have to think with. Even their attempts to undermine that tool have to use that tool to do it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">By the way, there is a sensible question like this that one might ask. One could ask, “what if there is a state of awareness which is to consciousness as consciousness is to dreaming?” That is a question that might be considered. But, that question does not equate dreaming and waking, it hypothesizes some third state while acknowledging the existence of the other two.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If we don't trust the tool we have to work with, we have no reliable means of learning anything, including learning that our tool is defective. So, education must be a matter of refining our ability to use the tools we have (common sense) if education is going to mean anything or do anything at all. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We should at least be willing to bet on common sense, because its the only bet we've got."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; line-height: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-29068443685064024902015-05-18T18:08:00.002-04:002015-05-18T18:08:13.223-04:00Update 31<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A Thought</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Do you think that things like Facebook, Twitter, and instantaneous communication actually enable us to get any <i>more</i> done, or are we just busier about it? I know I'm not the first one to ask the question, but it's been occurring to me recently. I will say this though: without instantaneous communication, it isn't at all clear I'd have the <i>chance</i> to do the kind of work I want to do at all.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Progress Report</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I begin to understand the appeal of being a hermit. Not that I would want to give up my family or my other work; certainly not. But, I imagine it's quite a bit easier to get things done when you're by yourself in the desert. But, alas, I am not, and things related to other work press upon me. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">On a positive book-related note, someone recently found my draft in progress and began reading it (without my permission, but I forgive them) and said they couldn't bring themselves to put it down. So, that's a hopeful sign, yes?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I hope to have a little more for you next week.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-90228805268500546612015-05-11T23:29:00.000-04:002015-05-11T23:29:04.583-04:00Update 30<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A Thought</span></h2>
<div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsK9c7GWA_2l6CJ1e75i2yvlBb4hvKiADl5-0O8gmS_NaeqZPbsiFXXogbNy8-uTHvteELhALGRwOHn3Uyd7_cYsGpOUDWWUMrXxR2k0E9GT6Fp21nfYLEIBZuah-Cgyo_rfS7RbpczwA/s1600/Edge_Of_Tomorrow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsK9c7GWA_2l6CJ1e75i2yvlBb4hvKiADl5-0O8gmS_NaeqZPbsiFXXogbNy8-uTHvteELhALGRwOHn3Uyd7_cYsGpOUDWWUMrXxR2k0E9GT6Fp21nfYLEIBZuah-Cgyo_rfS7RbpczwA/s400/Edge_Of_Tomorrow.jpg" width="266" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The other night I watched about the first half of <i>Edge of Tomorrow</i>, a 2014 sci-fi movie starring Tom Cruise, in which a soldier repeatedly dies in a battle and wakes up the morning before, with his memory of the coming battle intact.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I can't judge the film as a whole, considering I haven't finished watching it. The reason I mention it is that watching as much as I did made me feel quite good for a surprising reason.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Several of the people watching the movie with me were friends who do not play video games. During a certain part of the film, when Tom Cruise's character is attempting various feats over and over again, dying and trying again, everyone (including me) was laughing. It was a strange combination of lighthearted and brutal, and it was a lot like playing a video game.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The movie did a good job conveying that experience of repeating a scenario over and over until you get it right. It had the same kind of excitement, anticipation and then comedic surprise at failure. What pleased me so much was that, without realizing it, my friends who don't play video games were enjoying something very video-gamey with me. It was a cool connection to make with them, and amusing to reflect on the fact that they weren't aware of it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Progress Report</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I continue to read through everything, attempting to find those places that I can tell need more fleshing out in Part 1. During this most recent reading, I think I figured out how to bring things back and tie all the subsections together, so that's good. I'd like to think I'm actually approaching the point when I'll want a few other people to read this thing, and tell me how much more is missing than I realize.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-18859780179671928332015-05-04T23:55:00.002-04:002015-05-04T23:55:39.586-04:00Update 29<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">An announcement</span></h2>
<div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6NEhzNMvlBauO8E8mlA6jnf7Z3zx2idFgw6FhuwtxJg-2RbDD2eboGNmziKm5qt0GRCpxbNxUNc_FudUVDCzwvG-ZTzrrQFNMDsNRylVwY1AaHAYIK2A4TGEywKUluE6xyY_SFP8VR_I/s1600/wordle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6NEhzNMvlBauO8E8mlA6jnf7Z3zx2idFgw6FhuwtxJg-2RbDD2eboGNmziKm5qt0GRCpxbNxUNc_FudUVDCzwvG-ZTzrrQFNMDsNRylVwY1AaHAYIK2A4TGEywKUluE6xyY_SFP8VR_I/s400/wordle.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've concluded, upon reflection, that I'm going to have to discontinue releasing longer form articles on the first Monday of each month. Last month I had a good excuse in that it was Easter break. Today, however, I admit that having to prepare a longer article simply slipped my mind. Since I've started writing for <a href="http://www%2Cpixeldynamo.com/" target="_blank">Pixel Dynamo</a>, I've been a lot busier and the way I use my time has changed considerably. If I'm going to keep pace with my work over there, as well as write this book, I have to admit that there are only so many hours in a day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'll still be writing here every week, giving updates on the book's progress and offering some thoughts about things in general, but the longer articles are on hold for the time being.</span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Progress Report</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've compiled everything I've written for the book so far into a single document, so that I can take a look at how things are going over all. I read it through today, and I was surprised both by how good some of it sounded and by how much more there is to do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />The plan now is to finish up a couple sections, make a few passes through Part 1 to expand things, and then get some people together to tell me how all this is sounding. Then, once Part 1 is in some kind of order, I've got 10 commentaries to write, plus the 5 sections of Part 2. It's quite a task, but I will soldier on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-20099479659771084322015-05-04T23:53:00.002-04:002015-05-04T23:54:51.798-04:00Update 29<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">An announcement</span></h2>
<div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6NEhzNMvlBauO8E8mlA6jnf7Z3zx2idFgw6FhuwtxJg-2RbDD2eboGNmziKm5qt0GRCpxbNxUNc_FudUVDCzwvG-ZTzrrQFNMDsNRylVwY1AaHAYIK2A4TGEywKUluE6xyY_SFP8VR_I/s1600/wordle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6NEhzNMvlBauO8E8mlA6jnf7Z3zx2idFgw6FhuwtxJg-2RbDD2eboGNmziKm5qt0GRCpxbNxUNc_FudUVDCzwvG-ZTzrrQFNMDsNRylVwY1AaHAYIK2A4TGEywKUluE6xyY_SFP8VR_I/s400/wordle.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've concluded, upon reflection, that I'm going to have to discontinue releasing longer form articles on the first Monday of each month. Last month I had a good excuse in that it was Easter break. Today, however, I admit that having to prepare a longer article simply slipped my mind. Since I've started writing for <a href="http://www%2Cpixeldynamo.com/" target="_blank">Pixel Dynamo</a>, I've been a lot busier and the way I use my time has changed considerably. If I'm going to keep pace with my work over there, as well as write this book, I have to admit that there are only so many hours in a day.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'll still be writing here every week, giving updates on the book's progress and offering some thoughts about things in general, but the longer articles are on hold for the time being.</span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Progress Report</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've compiled everything I've written for the book so far into a single document, so that I can take a look at how things are going over all. I read it through today, and I was surprised both by how good some of it sounded and by how much more there is to do.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />The plan now is to finish up a couple sections, make a few passes through Part 1 to expand things, and then get some people together to tell me how all this is sounding. Then, once Part 1 is in some kind of order, I've got 10 commentaries to write, plus the 5 sections of Part 2. It's quite a task, but I will soldier on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-88498370692666366602015-04-27T23:27:00.002-04:002015-04-27T23:27:24.965-04:00Update 28<h2 style="height: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Another Excerpt</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLHVB03nPoAaz11RcxL6QdJ0-25P-ScMkQztmEa-f8Y_4WAdyfNsIMS9GbeHo5VulQAPV-v2vdfIL_A2qY1NLQCmEyJPBDn60fJ_R9d7AojZh0keFYV1QelXt5WfhyphenhyphengWn27Y6rJLc5LtQ/s1600/Shakespeare.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLHVB03nPoAaz11RcxL6QdJ0-25P-ScMkQztmEa-f8Y_4WAdyfNsIMS9GbeHo5VulQAPV-v2vdfIL_A2qY1NLQCmEyJPBDn60fJ_R9d7AojZh0keFYV1QelXt5WfhyphenhyphengWn27Y6rJLc5LtQ/s1600/Shakespeare.jpg" height="320" width="249" /></a><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"So, knowing what a classic is, we can see that no one who ever painted a picture, sculpted a sculpture, or wrote a book, play or piece of music knew that what they'd made was a classic, because it wasn't one yet. They might have thought it was good. But, whether it was an enduring master work of the human mind simply hadn't been tested yet, and declaring your own work to be so would be, to say the least, cheeky. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This means that anybody who made the kind of art this book is concerned with, like Shakespeare for instance, made it without knowing it was a classic. He might have wanted it to be, but he made it in any case.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And that is what pop-culture is. It's what people are making <b>now </b>in response to the same human condition and the same world that all the classic authors and artists were dealing with. It hasn't been tested, it might not be right, but it is humanity's ongoing wrestling match with the universe and, hopefully, there are some classics in there waiting to be proven."</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"> © 2015 John Hiner III</span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-22984815530561076532015-04-20T23:53:00.003-04:002015-04-20T23:53:20.353-04:00Update 27<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here's a continuation of the discussion of pop-culture and the great conversation from last week:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">So, to understand the place that pop-culture can have in this big human conversation, we have to understand something about the concept of a "classic".</span><span class="EOP SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></i><br />
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<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The word "classic" means something approved as a model or of the highest class. In culture (without the pop on the front) one of the test these classic works have generally had to pass is the test of time. Some contemporary of a work may have identified its importance and genius at the time it was written, but real classics generally endure a long period of scrutiny before they're accept as such.</span><span class="EOP SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></i></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-LTy35AMAyoqU_qCpYIgi4NzUyZss9Zile6cc4oLVGUEgBRiLsIWKH9hs3V4mI-5W_arh68J_-2y9ig0yl54JlHEk_YHSXoBriHSBWOT8gT2zgdZ2L8slBQDRroA_aX06HDtJGNT5FM/s1600/gandalf_the_grey_by_kitao_chan-d5t4w3i.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-LTy35AMAyoqU_qCpYIgi4NzUyZss9Zile6cc4oLVGUEgBRiLsIWKH9hs3V4mI-5W_arh68J_-2y9ig0yl54JlHEk_YHSXoBriHSBWOT8gT2zgdZ2L8slBQDRroA_aX06HDtJGNT5FM/s1600/gandalf_the_grey_by_kitao_chan-d5t4w3i.jpg" height="291" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gandalf, for instance. He's very old and has a lot of<br />wise things to say. Also, if you don't respect him, he could<br />certainly destroy you.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<i style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">This makes perfect sense because culture, being an endeavor shared and passed on by people from generation to generation, has the time to spare, and we wouldn't want something of inferior quality to sneak by and be approved as a model. Once it was, it would drag the bar down and our standards would get worse and worse.</span><span class="EOP SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></i></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<i style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></i></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<i style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">Time isn't a sufficient standard but, the longer something has had to prove itself to be useful, and the more criticism it has had to endure, the more likely It's something worth listening to.</span><span class="EOP SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></i></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<i style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></span></i></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<i style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">It's similar to respecting one's elders. Respecting one's elders isn't some arbitrary moral injunction designed to oppress the young. It's good strategy.</span><span class="EOP SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></i></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<br /></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The mere fact that people have lived a long time doesn't ensure that they're wise and worth listening to. They may not have learned a thing after they were eighteen years old. However, you KNOW eighteen year olds haven't learned anything after they were eighteen years old. At least an older person has had a chance to figure things out, so it's worth respecting them enough to listen."</span></i></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="TextRun SCX61145574" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">Where pop-culture fits into this comes next.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: left;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><a href="http://mabiruna.deviantart.com/art/Gandalf-the-Grey-351267966" target="_blank">Here</a> is where I got the nifty image above.</span></span></div>
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-84007838259776083472015-04-13T23:45:00.001-04:002015-04-13T23:45:58.011-04:00Update 26: Belts<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
<h2 style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;">
<span class="TextRun SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Some Thoughts</span></span></h2>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4gwpw8WehZlFRdXlk-5g_ATQMie0xdcOAsWt3CVIS3AeR8rZY2rERA2u6_-Q27XoTvjUMhBCChyphenhyphenUAOmS9AtOFBMsxeNl211qLZEbHVFZln5bytYiNvkb2Km8gxDck3lLtC03C5BdiN78/s1600/chestnut-belt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4gwpw8WehZlFRdXlk-5g_ATQMie0xdcOAsWt3CVIS3AeR8rZY2rERA2u6_-Q27XoTvjUMhBCChyphenhyphenUAOmS9AtOFBMsxeNl211qLZEbHVFZln5bytYiNvkb2Km8gxDck3lLtC03C5BdiN78/s1600/chestnut-belt.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>A belt</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">I've been thinking about how to start the chapter on pop-culture. I've already started writing it, and I think I've shared a little of it here. But, in the bit I've written, I make very casual reference to something like the great conversation of humanity. This concept is very familiar to me, and has had a lot to do with my education, but it might not be very familiar to other people. So, how do I explain the idea?</span><span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="TextRun SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="TextRun SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">I think I'll talk about belts. Belts have been made by human beings for a long, long time, probably as long as there have been pants (because the damn things don't stay up on their own). But, who invented the belt? Who owns the patent? No one. The idea of the belt is the common heritage of all human beings, handed down from generation to generation.</span><span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<br /></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">This is true of the belt even though anyone could have thought of it. It is a very basic tool that serves a function common to all people everywhere: keeping clothes on. This is even true where climate makes the clothes largely ceremonial. Anyone could invent the belt, but they might never get around to it. They might never wear pants, or be too busy fighting for their lives, or any number of things. And yet, we still have the idea, because it's been passed on and passed around.</span><span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<br /></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: white; clear: both; cursor: text; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow: visible; padding: 0px; position: relative;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="TextRun SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" xml:lang="EN-US">The great conversation of humanity includes belts. It also includes written and spoken language, mathematics, and the concept of the soul. All of these are things that arise because they have to do with what is important to human beings as human beings. People have learned them or figured them out, and then shared them with other people. Many of them could have been figured out by anyone, because they concern our common condition, but we don't need to work at it from scratch because people before us and around us let us know what's up.</span><span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">That's roughly what I mean by "the great conversation". I mean all those things and ideas people have been making, taking, modifying, rejecting, reconsidering and handing on. How pop-culture fits into this is the subject of the chapter on pop-culture.</span></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; text-align: right; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><b style="color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><b style="color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; padding: 0px; text-align: right; vertical-align: baseline; word-wrap: break-word;" xml:lang="EN-US">
<span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></span></div>
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<span class="EOP SCX14320590" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; -webkit-user-drag: none; -webkit-user-select: text; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-53456975260489391992015-04-06T21:40:00.001-04:002015-04-06T21:40:31.351-04:00Happy Easter<h2>
<span style="font-size: large;">Happy Easter!</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnHSlXfu1F9u3ktMHr8y4U7RVQ1b265YBO0v3LE6yNk3Qg0UtQxNQaRSPjUVkFqh9uQ-06wjnSQyTJgzHxtAMLgH8_Qay9l9LLfH9OF_CxtEPzJDg6NxG5I9T03Lv2QsJJz7EbIxEJ0P4/s1600/url2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnHSlXfu1F9u3ktMHr8y4U7RVQ1b265YBO0v3LE6yNk3Qg0UtQxNQaRSPjUVkFqh9uQ-06wjnSQyTJgzHxtAMLgH8_Qay9l9LLfH9OF_CxtEPzJDg6NxG5I9T03Lv2QsJJz7EbIxEJ0P4/s1600/url2.jpeg" height="320" width="248" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">It is Easter everybody, and so I will be taking this week off. Until we meet again, here is some lovely music of a much different tone than what we've been <a href="http://johntakespopculture.blogspot.com/2015/03/update-24.html" target="_blank">discussing recently</a>:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<a href="https://soundcloud.com/davidfennmusic" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">David Fenn on SoundCloud</span></a>John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-24711213016137033362015-03-30T23:56:00.004-04:002015-03-30T23:56:40.580-04:00Update 25<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Some Thoughts</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Recently, I've been thinking of trying my hand at writing some Twine games. You know, with all my extra time. Twine is (basically and a little inaccurately) a piece of free software for writing choose-your-own-adventure stories.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyDcl0-wUckMJHRn9QrzF1AbCmfMu_6kPs-jB6gxFRHQkyxNegFyNaTAqrA355EkLpYgMy37eHyP21kgYGWCbinbudL5PbxgjiEZU9OxBMuWSQgyezATp3Y-hwaYJEvEcj4E3f3hBhj1g/s1600/diagram.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyDcl0-wUckMJHRn9QrzF1AbCmfMu_6kPs-jB6gxFRHQkyxNegFyNaTAqrA355EkLpYgMy37eHyP21kgYGWCbinbudL5PbxgjiEZU9OxBMuWSQgyezATp3Y-hwaYJEvEcj4E3f3hBhj1g/s1600/diagram.jpg" height="269" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here's a diagram I drew of a basic structure for a Twine game.<br />I have no idea whether following it will produce good stories<br />(it was designed geometrically). It looks cool though. We'll see how it goes.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm thinking of doing this, first because I'd like to practice the kind of descriptive, evocative writing required by fiction, and second because I'm fascinated by the possibilities (and limitations) of making fiction interactive. Twine is a quick and easy way to begin exploring some of that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here's a <a href="http://mrwasteland.itch.io/twwds" target="_blank">Twine game</a> I came across earlier today that I recommend. The subject is, perhaps, a little "niche" (the whole thing takes place during a meeting of the lead developers of a big-budget video game project), but I'd call it well written and funny, and I think the themes are pretty universal, even if the particulars aren't.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Also on the subject of interactive fiction, here's one of my favorite <a href="http://wsblog.iash.unibe.ch/wp-content/uploads/Borges_The-Garden-of-Forking-Paths.pdf" target="_blank">short stories</a>, which I also recommend.</span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Another little sample of the book</span></h2>
<div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"The human race is participating in a
great and on going conversation. Sometimes it isn't very civil or
very organized, other times it really is. But, being a conversation,
what comes before influences what comes after and, being human
beings, the same topics recur, because they are the things that
really concern us and matter to us.</span></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The human race is participating in a
great conversation, and pop-culture is the cocktail party.
Pop-culture is the dorm common room at two in the morning, when some
people are still seriously involved in thinking about the ideas
brought up that day, and other people are just shooting the breeze,
and maybe everybody is doing both alternately."</span></i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© John Hiner III</span></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-9481063346589784992015-03-23T23:45:00.000-04:002015-03-23T23:45:08.717-04:00Update 24<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Progress Report</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">There have been times in my life when I was busy and found it frustrating, and others when I've had time on my hands and found that frustrating too. I'm happy to say that, at the moment, I'm pretty happy with how busy I am. But, it still means I'm busy, and finding time for more my personal writing projects can be tough.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJT7APmEyjq_ppRCYKR3q2pyCNryHKPVJqp5mMpDSXtvfhoXUHv9cMXbyVZQvJxLIDvd4uezjZrXm2FtEMKCS9nnTek1WoEmQ37F8XgfpvFx3av1-F_YqMGq2xDzzei714dIvhQ3uOgkk/s1600/super-smash-bros.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJT7APmEyjq_ppRCYKR3q2pyCNryHKPVJqp5mMpDSXtvfhoXUHv9cMXbyVZQvJxLIDvd4uezjZrXm2FtEMKCS9nnTek1WoEmQ37F8XgfpvFx3av1-F_YqMGq2xDzzei714dIvhQ3uOgkk/s1600/super-smash-bros.jpg" height="278" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's a pretty eye catching picture, yeah? It has to do with<br />the article I wrote for Pixel Dynamo. I didn't want another picture<br />of Nirvana this week...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm still in the process of writing the chapter on <i>Smells Like Teen Spirit</i>, and I'd say it's going well so far. There's another excerpt below. Also, <a href="http://www.pixeldynamo.com/news/gaming/2015/03/23/56722/characters-smash-bros-just-toys/" target="_blank">here's a link</a> to one of the articles I wrote for Pixel Dynamo today. I'm pretty pleased with it, and I encourage you to make comments on it over there. It's a conversation starter in need of a conversation!<a name='more'></a></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Another Teaser</span></h2>
<div>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-7eb3a060-49dd-547f-3462-09456de80fcd"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"When we listen to Beethoven, we don’t think about Beethoven. Although his mind conceived the 9th Symphony, he could not (nor could any single human being) produce the reality of the 9th Symphony. Such a piece of music has the life of its own I was talking about, but not only that, the life it has is not a human one. It is, in fact, a lesser life than a human being, but it can certainly </span><span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">seem</span><span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> grander and more powerful, specifically because it is smaller and therefore more easily grasped by us.</span></div>
<br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The same is </span><span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">actually</span><span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> true in the case of music written and performed by a modern band or musical artist (the Beatles, Elvis, Jon Bon Jovi, or Nirvana). The life and world of the music is smaller than real life and the real world. But, in the case of the band, the performance involves a speaker; a person. That person plays a role in the miniature world of the music that both produces and is affected by the nature of the music. The singer, and the rest of the members of the band, are acting in character and taking on personas.</span></div>
<br /><span style="vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">The music of a modern band draws us into its miniature world, as all music does, but when we get there we find someone else (or what seems like someone else) already there. The singer is speaking to us. There is at least one character in this little world, and he is just as intense and absorbed in the dynamic force of the song as the rest of what makes up the song."</span></span></i></span></span></div>
<div>
<span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><span style="font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: left;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: left;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-68995581313129958462015-03-16T23:55:00.001-04:002015-03-16T23:55:59.905-04:00Update 23<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Progress Report</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The current structural plan of the book is to alternate between a more generally philosophical chapter (such as the chapter on human nature, or the chapter on art) and a chapter that comments on some particular piece of pop-culture which is relevant to the surrounding philosophical discussions.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrACUt7Btlnuq3Lq_BCjotqw2kFpXcydErS57pcEwfwo4Bm2a7OqxnBhQwmdlDtrFvJMXy6cYFgMuJCpX_matTVRxaGw-D4HxPgsqeY8zxd-DLD9rFxto6KKffBh_1ydeZdFOPwMEzZHU/s1600/nirvana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrACUt7Btlnuq3Lq_BCjotqw2kFpXcydErS57pcEwfwo4Bm2a7OqxnBhQwmdlDtrFvJMXy6cYFgMuJCpX_matTVRxaGw-D4HxPgsqeY8zxd-DLD9rFxto6KKffBh_1ydeZdFOPwMEzZHU/s1600/nirvana.jpg" height="245" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've started work on one of these more focused, critical chapters. The subject is <i>Smells</i> <i>Like Teen Spirit</i> by Nirvana. What it's led to so far is some general conversation about the nature of music, and how the modern "band" fits into that.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="http://johntakespopculture.blogspot.com/2013/10/musical-personae.html" target="_blank">Here's a link</a> to a previous discussion of mine about music. I'm sure I'll be revisiting that article as this chapter develops. And, below is an excerpt from the newly begun chapter. Go ahead and tell me what you think.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">A Teaser</span></h2>
<div>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-6030dfca-25dc-c475-c334-0c7d7fc16ae8"><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Making music requires careful thought and planning, and repeated practice. But, when we listen to music, if that preparation and care has come to fruition, the music itself will not seem like the result of a long, laborious process of production, but like a spontaneous and living thing. And, when the piece of music is great (if not necessarily good) that living thing is filled with mysterious and dynamic purpose; intense intention; a commanding presence that invisibly dominates the place in which it is heard.</span></div>
<br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A great piece of music draws the listener into a world of its own; a world of mental sensations and glimpses of thoughts, a world of emotions.</span></div>
<br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Smells Like Teen Spirit</span><span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is such a piece of music.</span></div>
<br /><span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And, this contrast between the experience of listening to music, and the nature of making music, might even cause you to think of Nirvana as disingenuous. This is because of the nature of being “a band”, which we’ll have to take a little detour here and discuss, I guess..."</span></span></i></span></div>
<div>
<span><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-60714697671944608352015-03-09T23:53:00.000-04:002015-03-10T00:07:18.228-04:00Update 22 and Phil Fish<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Hello there. The last several days have been quite an adventure. My uncle died, my son went into the hospital (he should recover just fine), and my car was totaled (by a blown head gasket). One of the best things about writing about pop-culture is that is requires a combination of seriousness and levity. Unfortunately, seriousness and levity are difficult to attain along side exhaustion and stress.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/PmTUW-owa2w/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/PmTUW-owa2w?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So, I really don't have much for you this week, nor do I have much time in which to write it before the clock strikes midnight. So, what I'm going to do is embed a rather non sequitor video for you to ponder. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The subject matter is a man named Phil Fish who developed a very good indie video game called "Fez", and who many people on the internet came to dislike very strongly. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I do not promise perfection in the analysis, style, or argument of this video, but it is thought-provoking as it attempts to grapple with the difference between a person and the digital paper-trail left by and about a person on the internet that forms a sort of caricature of them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Give it a watch if you like, no pressure. And, I hope I'll be back next week with a couple witticisms and an update on the book.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19.2000007629395px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">© 2015 John Hiner III</span></span></div>
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<script async="" defer="" src="//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js" type="text/javascript"></script>John R. Hiner IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00140675086550590285noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5709256467917661142.post-21516692661830776132015-03-02T23:30:00.000-05:002016-05-03T17:54:52.726-04:00Robocop (the reboot)<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I saw advertisements for the </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Robocop</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “reboot” before it was released and rolled my eyes, thinking what I think whenever the amorphous “they” decides to fill the minds of the younger generation with a slick, grim, shaky-cam butchering of some classic of my childhood. I rolled my eyes, and paid it no mind.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO9bRGDsKlMZn2-tx3NN68ciHkCKfvEsLmnccXCv6b82-yiLOfMNhRdFxjtpTyQ-uhCuycJKkWHDAk1YvlGr22eK1xstxKnytXxHBdIwdGO4hx-bE-2UyUTw4sAwZ0D9M7bi8Uj2s6aDc/s1600/RoboCop-signed-poster-competition.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO9bRGDsKlMZn2-tx3NN68ciHkCKfvEsLmnccXCv6b82-yiLOfMNhRdFxjtpTyQ-uhCuycJKkWHDAk1YvlGr22eK1xstxKnytXxHBdIwdGO4hx-bE-2UyUTw4sAwZ0D9M7bi8Uj2s6aDc/s1600/RoboCop-signed-poster-competition.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<a name='more'></a><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCj6GYnc_meJPckTnFYVFsXZYgp2OjWnm1OCNh72P6d2m-DtMyiSBSw1gMSh9ZaIb4YXgx8c7yVhySEI-92CoIaNRqw_Xg9wwodxNmp1nG-K0ScmRiwEVZ-H9hY_2L9R8Afh7lymGCeo/s1600/RoboCop-signed-poster-competition.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But, thanks to Netflix Watch Instantly, I was able to see it on a whim recently and, to my great surprise and delight, I liked it. Not only did I like it, I think it’s better than the original. Here’s why.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When contemplating this new </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Robocop</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, something occurred to me about 80’s action movies. Many of them (I’d say it’s a defining trait) are brutal. “Well, of course they are!” you might say. But, I’m not just talking about violence; obviously recent action movies have violence in spades. What I mean is that the situations and fictional worlds presented in '80s movies are often </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">merely</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> violent. Think of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Conan the Barbarian</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Running Man,</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the original </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Robocop</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> for example. These worlds aren't really savage and violent with a clear purpose or metaphor. They don't really reflect much about reality. If they present an idea to be considered, the idea is always very general, or remains in the background.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4PhQ12fJSwzaxCkYmEnMuNuC4JK-Ls0x0Wulto8XBsrWs9ep41eSYP62l7DZeE6TsY1IYNC_Xi3VwhJKgyjL1riEILIs4UiMqmLPAhpp0IzCPayehViAi4fQTrSLzavN6bOOoEECJqIs/s1600/robocop_xlg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4PhQ12fJSwzaxCkYmEnMuNuC4JK-Ls0x0Wulto8XBsrWs9ep41eSYP62l7DZeE6TsY1IYNC_Xi3VwhJKgyjL1riEILIs4UiMqmLPAhpp0IzCPayehViAi4fQTrSLzavN6bOOoEECJqIs/s1600/robocop_xlg.jpg" width="201" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The new </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Robocop</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, on the other hand, is clearly </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">about</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> something. It’s about corporations, advertising, and bureaucracy dehumanizing people. It’s about whether man is a physical machine or a spirit. It's about what happens when men of science allow personal ambition and reputation to destroy conscience. It may not </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">say</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> much about any one of those things, but it’s clearly </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">about </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">them.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 16.560001373291px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Perhaps the same can be said of the original <i>Robocop</i>, but I don't remember it making me think about any of those things the last time I watched it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 16.560001373291px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The villains in the original, for instance, are just cold, faceless corporate dudes. They want money and power (muhahaha!),</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 16.560001373291px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But, in the reboot, Michael Keaton's character is a lot more expressive than that. He's a slick business man. He runs a company that sells a certain kind of product, and he's trying to make money by selling it. That is what business men actually do. He's evil because he's trying to manipulate people into buying his product, and he'll use and abuse people (like Alex Murphy) to do it. But, again, real business men actually do that. His motivations are not mysterious or non-existent. They're very clear and real motivations. Even though he's talking about engineering cyborgs, his character seems a lot closer to reality.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 16.560001373291px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And, because so much of the depiction of Alex Murphy becoming Robocop is about whether or not he's in control of his actions, whether he can be made as "efficient" as a machine while still being a man, and what it means to be human, the movie poses all kinds of questions about the nature and purpose of government, the ethics of business and its treatment of people, the scope of medical science, etc.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 16.560001373291px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 16.560001373291px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's an action movie, so it doesn't talk as much as it shoots and explodes. But, in the reboot the actions spoke quite a bit louder to me than in the original. I think it's definitely worth a watch.</span></span></div>
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